lazerskull
Well-known member
Hi everyone. My name is Lazerskull. I have been hopping trains since 1995. It's been awhile since I've been back. I know there are quite a few dumbasses on the rails now selfie sticks and all hanging from the sides of box cars. I'm not one of those! I was 14 on my first ride up to Dunsmir from Roseville. It was in the 1990's. We rode a boxcar with a door facing out the East side. We got on in the early afternoon and we were passing Riverview and Lamoine by twilight so we got to see the river and mountains and all that and we got off in the dark perfect timing. Well here's another stroke of luck. We walk with our gear north into town and at the main street they are hosting a 100 year Centennial party for something. There's a band in the street and people everywhere. It was awesome. We were sipping from a bottle of Kessler and taking it in when we realized we ought to finalize our sleeping situation. So bid adieu to the town and hiked up North along the main line a ways. Past the official campground across the river we found our own place not too far from the tracks. One train passed during the night and blasted its lights all through the foliage and was jarring and yet awesome. The next morning we met North Bank Fred in a small restaurant and then he told us there'd be another hot shot going back around noon. So we got back out there and sure enough it stopped right by our camp site. So we got on a piggy back and laid down by the wheels and kept a low profile. Then we enjoyed an awesome ride back and made it back to RSV before dinner time. I remember as a young kid not wanting to leave the train. While my home life wasn't as bad as some. It wasn't good either. I had seen my mom wield a knife and attack my dad's bedroom and he slammed the door on her with us in there and she sliced open her arm and we called 911 and she drove off into the night by herself. I had seen my older brother physically assault my mother and constantly bully myself and younger sister with constant harassment. My Dad was basically an alcoholic and while he was a good dude he wasn't really present ever. I also worked for him too. So you see as a teenager I had my justifiable reasons for wanting to disappear. In some ways maybe my life would have been better if I did. There were a few times after fighting my brother I'd simply not come home after school and stayed with a friend for a week. I look back on all that shit and I don't even know how the hell I survived any of it. Luckily I didn't get too heavy into drugs. Only a little bit of weed and ecstasy a few times but never did blow. I drank a fuck ton though which I also don't understand how the hell I graduated high school I think freshmen year I was drunk half the year. Back then a 5 dollar bill was good for a 40 oz. beer and a pack of Marlboro's. Holy shit that was all I needed and my skateboard.
So fast forward (because there were a few other freight hopping trips in there I won't get into now for the sake of getting through this message) now I am in my mid thirties. All right I am neither old nor young. It's a weird age. I'll tell all you fucking 20 somethings don't be fucking dicks to people in their 30's because soon enough you'll see what it's all about.
You tend to have friends from both sides of the spectrum. You're like the generational middle child. You have friends in their 40's and 50's and also friends in their 20's. At least that's how it is for me. And I love all of them. It's just that for my friends in their 40's I can relate to about life shit better. But those guys don't do the physical stuff I still do. I still skate, snowboard, hike, camp, sleep outta my Ford Explorer, roadtrip, a lot of shit that 20 somethings do but not 40's and 50 year olds. (If any of you do more power to you)! 2017 for example I drove out to Brogan Oregon and slept in a cow pasture waiting for the Eclipse the only other people there were the two dudes in my group and this Ex NASA scientist we had the entire place to ourselves. All those assholes on the 101/Salem route had to deal with traffic and being squeezed into parking lots with nowhere to stand rubbing elbows with each other ... had no idea what we saw.
So here I am now in my mid thirties. I have a few contacts in the rail industry. I won't disclose anything about them publicly. I have a decent job. I have a decent apartment in the East Bay Area. I tend not to do much in the summers. This year I am like thinking to myself. Fuck it. Why the fuck not let's go ride some trains. So this is my gift to myself. A fucking throwback trip being punk again.
Here's my record. I have at least 30 days or around 1,000 hours on trains in various trips. Mostly between Roseville and Dunsmir/Eugene, OR. and a few times between Roseville and Martinez... I have been in a derail and survived. I have dodged the bull in Klamath Falls (he was a famous guy... I forget his name it was like Rodney or something) several times. I've never been caught or injured. Okay so I am seriously gunna knock on wood because I ain't about to jinx myself on this fucking forum. But you get the point: I am a no nonsense kinda dude. I'll have fun but ain't about to put myself at risk.
SO here's the deal. I am planning a trip from RSV to Cheyenne on a North Platte intermodel hopefully. From Cheyenne catch out North to Billings. Try to get to Billings a day before my flight back to SFO. 1 way flights are around 150 bucks right now.
I'll have my pack and my skateboard. Contemplating the ukulele however I travel light.
I'll be out there in August so if you want specifics and wanna join lemme know!!!!!
So fast forward (because there were a few other freight hopping trips in there I won't get into now for the sake of getting through this message) now I am in my mid thirties. All right I am neither old nor young. It's a weird age. I'll tell all you fucking 20 somethings don't be fucking dicks to people in their 30's because soon enough you'll see what it's all about.
You tend to have friends from both sides of the spectrum. You're like the generational middle child. You have friends in their 40's and 50's and also friends in their 20's. At least that's how it is for me. And I love all of them. It's just that for my friends in their 40's I can relate to about life shit better. But those guys don't do the physical stuff I still do. I still skate, snowboard, hike, camp, sleep outta my Ford Explorer, roadtrip, a lot of shit that 20 somethings do but not 40's and 50 year olds. (If any of you do more power to you)! 2017 for example I drove out to Brogan Oregon and slept in a cow pasture waiting for the Eclipse the only other people there were the two dudes in my group and this Ex NASA scientist we had the entire place to ourselves. All those assholes on the 101/Salem route had to deal with traffic and being squeezed into parking lots with nowhere to stand rubbing elbows with each other ... had no idea what we saw.
So here I am now in my mid thirties. I have a few contacts in the rail industry. I won't disclose anything about them publicly. I have a decent job. I have a decent apartment in the East Bay Area. I tend not to do much in the summers. This year I am like thinking to myself. Fuck it. Why the fuck not let's go ride some trains. So this is my gift to myself. A fucking throwback trip being punk again.
Here's my record. I have at least 30 days or around 1,000 hours on trains in various trips. Mostly between Roseville and Dunsmir/Eugene, OR. and a few times between Roseville and Martinez... I have been in a derail and survived. I have dodged the bull in Klamath Falls (he was a famous guy... I forget his name it was like Rodney or something) several times. I've never been caught or injured. Okay so I am seriously gunna knock on wood because I ain't about to jinx myself on this fucking forum. But you get the point: I am a no nonsense kinda dude. I'll have fun but ain't about to put myself at risk.
SO here's the deal. I am planning a trip from RSV to Cheyenne on a North Platte intermodel hopefully. From Cheyenne catch out North to Billings. Try to get to Billings a day before my flight back to SFO. 1 way flights are around 150 bucks right now.
I'll have my pack and my skateboard. Contemplating the ukulele however I travel light.
I'll be out there in August so if you want specifics and wanna join lemme know!!!!!
